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August 7, 2008 E-MAIL PRINT

For Preps

Lacrosse players continue to choose the prep school route to improve their chances to play at the college level and to better their overall educational experience

by Mike Zhe/

With fall approaching, thousands of student-athletes are weighing the advantages of attending a college preparatory school, many with the hopes of using a prep school as a stepping stone to college lacrosse.

There is no shortage of options here in New England. The New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) counts 170 institutions among its members. There are more than 100 schools in New England and nearby New York that field lacrosse teams, and the differences among them go far beyond the level of play on the field.

Choosing the right prep school is no simple task. There are day schools and boarding schools, plus some that offer five-day boarding. There are schools for boys only, schools for girls only and co-ed schools. There are schools that follow a religious program of studies and ones that are secular. Some offer postgraduate years and some do not. Some are very selective academically, others are less so.

“First and foremost, they need to find a good fit in terms of the school, not lacrosse,” said Meghan Cleary, the girls lacrosse coach at Noble and Greenough in Dedham, Mass. “If the school isn’t a good fit, nothing else is going to be, either.”

Many students will narrow their list to five or six before making visits to the schools, usually in the fall or early winter. Complete applications are due at most schools by early January, and acceptance letters usually go out in March.

There are things a player should make a point of doing between the point of choosing the schools he or she wants to consider, and getting that acceptance letter.

“A prospective lacrosse player at any of these schools would want to contact the coach, let them know that they’re interested and that they’re going to be on campus,” Cleary said. “I encourage it because it helps me personalize players a little more.”

Attending a boarding school for one year typically costs between $30,000 and $40,000. Scholarships strictly for lacrosse and other sports are not awarded. Schools use a financial aid formula to determine how much assistance is given, and there is typically more aid available in March and April than July and August.

Students should be prepared to do research on the prep schools they’re considering before lining up visits. Academic standards vary, and they should be sure they have included one or two applications to “safety” schools.

“What I tell student-athletes and families is that there are great lacrosse programs all over the place and great private schools,” said Bill Lee, the boys lacrosse coach at Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H. “Ultimately, what it comes down to is the academic match and the feel that they get.”

A seasonal dilemma

Jay Keough coaches both boys lacrosse and boys hockey at Hebron Academy in Maine, and he recognizes the challenges of recruiting for lacrosse due to timing issues.

In many cases, a high school athlete won’t consider a postgraduate year until during or after an outstanding senior season. With lacrosse a spring sport, most student-athletes will have already made a decision about where they’ll be going to school in the fall.

“The thing with prep school lacrosse is it’s very hard to recruit a kid for the next year,” Keough said. “It’s usually two years down the road. Most of the kids you see in the spring who’d like to come (in the fall) could have a problem because most of the financial aid was used in April.”

That was the case with both of Hebron’s two recent standouts: Greg Harrington, who is now at Division 2 Merrimack College, and C.J. Estes, who’s headed to Division 3 Nazareth College. Both scored more than 80 points in postgraduate years at Hebron.

“(Harrington) was going to go to college and had a great first six games of his senior lacrosse season,” Keough said. “A lot of these kids that have great senior years have been overlooked.”

Most prep coaches have teams made up of three types of players: the ones who’ve been on their radar screens for more than an academic year or two and have designs on playing at a high level in college; those they have met during the players’ visits to the school; and those they don’t meet until school starts.

“Some kids I don’t even know until I see them on the first day of tryouts,” Cleary said.

With more than 100 New England prep schools that field lacrosse teams, there is a wide array in the level of play. Many of the strongest programs are found in two leagues: the Independent School League, which is made up of 16 schools (15 for girls) in the Greater Boston area, and the Founders League, which is made up of schools in the western part of New England.

Because students can enter prep schools as freshmen, sophomores, juniors, seniors or postgraduates, it’s important to know the philosophy of the program. Some will add upperclass players and postgrads to the mix every year, which can make it harder for a younger player fighting to improve their standing. Others will eschew adding such players.

It is important to know a program’s philosophy in that matter, to minimize communication breakdowns later on.

The right fit

The buzz about Syracuse’s NCAA men’s lacrosse championship still hasn’t died down, nor has the talk about the behind-the-back goal scored by freshman attacker Stephen Keogh during the 13-10 victory over Johns Hopkins in the title game.

Like many who play collegiately at the Division 1 level, Keogh arrived via prep school, attending Brewster Academy for two years. But neither his road to prep school nor his road to college was routine, as often seen in other sports.

A Toronto native, Keogh was a standout in the indoor lacrosse game that’s prominent in Canada, but he hadn’t played much “field” lacrosse. He was spotted by Lee when the Brewster coach was looking at Tyler Collins, a Canadian who would stand out at Brewster and go on to play at Colgate.

As a junior, Keogh put up 113 points, breaking Brewster’s single-season scoring record by nearly 40 points. He followed that up with a 98-point season as a senior, but he still wasn’t attracting much Division 1 interest.

“It’s funny,” Lee said. “He was really kind of a hidden gem. He wasn’t on people’s radar screens. Fairfield had some interest in him. Stony Brook. A couple others. But nobody else.

“At one point I just cold-called (Syracuse coach) John Desko and said, ‘I’ve got this kid you need to look at.’ John told him to come up to a one-day camp they were having in June. I got a call probably the day after that camp ended about how much they liked him.”

As a freshman (albeit 21 years old), Keogh scored 20 goals — seventh-most on the team — and 22 points. Two of those goals came in the national championship game. With three of the team’s top six scorers graduating, Keogh is looking forward to a prominent role next season and beyond.
Keogh’s road to glory illustrates the inexact science that is lacrosse recruiting — both at the prep school and college levels.

More than lacrosse

As in other sports, college lacrosse coaches like prep school players for several reasons: They’ve already been exposed to life away from home; they’ve shown they can strike a balance between sports, academics and social life; and the relationships the coaches have with prep school mentors give them a better feel for a player.

But while some players will look at prep lacrosse as the path to earning a college scholarship in the sport, many more won’t have that opportunity. There are 56 colleges that sponsor men’s lacrosse in Division 1, and 84 for women. That’s a fraction of the more than 300 that sponsor men’s and women’s basketball at the Division 1 level. In addition, several of those programs offer few or no full scholarships.

Only a small percentage of athletes will go on to play in college, and of that group, a tiny fraction will play beyond that.

“I try to be very real,” Lee explained. “I can’t promise you’ll be a Division 1 athlete, but you’ll play a competitive schedule and get looks from college coaches.”

In the end, coaches agree it’s important for student-athletes to choose a prep school for reasons beyond lacrosse.

“The kids that I get coming through average about five or six prep schools that they’re looking at,” Lee said. “I tell them I’d love to have them at Brewster, but they have to make the decision that feels right for them.”